


Grey's Anatomy One Shots

by saiwriteswords



Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:01:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 20,195
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28152777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saiwriteswords/pseuds/saiwriteswords
Summary: A number of Grey's Anatomy one-shots, mainly Mer/Hayes centred
Relationships: Atticus Lincoln/Amelia Shepherd, Meredith Grey & Cormac Hayes, Meredith Grey/Cormac Hayes
Comments: 35
Kudos: 100





	1. It's A Date

Andrew's suspension had weighed heavy on Meredith's mind over the past week. For a lot of reasons. She knew that there was no getting through to him right now, he wasn't ready to listen. There was only so much you could push a person, she would know. With Richard in hospital after his turn at the convention two days ago, Meredith was also contending with Maggie's panic as well as her own worry about him. It had made her reassess a lot of things. What she'd had with Andrew was great and she had loved him. In some ways she still did, it just wasn't romantic love anymore. Because as much joy as he had brought her, she didn't know if she could keep being a punching bag for him. She had three young kids that deserved to have the extra attention that she was giving Andrew and there was so much more in her career she wanted to focus on. Especially since she was organising the monthly pro-bono days. Over the past week, Meredith Grey had been letting Andrew go. Even if he had dumped her ages ago. Even if he didn't care. She was doing this for her and for her family. And she was okay about it, it hadn't hurt as much as she thought it was going to. Then again, she and Andrew hadn't really been together properly in a very long time. So, it wasn't really a fresh wound anymore.

After dropping her kids off to school, Meredith drove to the hospital and made a beeline for the coffee cart. Having to wrestle with getting three kids ready in the morning was a task. There was a consent form that Zola couldn't find, Bailey had managed to spill orange juice on his shirt and Ellis refused to have her hair brushed. All that hadn't let Meredith enough time to get her morning cup of coffee that she needed to function. So, the stop at the coffee cart was most definitely needed. If only the line wasn't so long.

"Grey!" That thick Irish accent was unmistakable and one that Meredith had grown accustomed to.

Meredith turned to look behind her, hair moving with the light breeze and smiled when she saw Hayes walking up to her./

"Hayes, I haven't seen you since you left for LA." He stood next to her in the line and they slowly shuffled forward.

Normally before her first cup of the day, Meredith hated talking to anyone that she hadn't given birth to. Surprisingly today she didn't actually mind Hayes' company. she even welcomed it.

"Aye, I got back late last night with the boys. I'm sorry about what happened with Dr Webber, I hear you two are close." A sympathetic smile was placed on his face. He thought about placing a hand on her arm but decided that maybe that would be overstepping a line. The last thing he wanted to do was make Meredith feel uncomfortable.

As they made the front of the queue Meredith made her order in and Cormac ordered straight after, "I've got these!" He paid the barista before Meredith even had a chance to pull her purse out.

Usually, Meredith didn't like things to be bought for her. Her mother had always taught her to stand on her own two feet but when it came to coffee, she definitely did not mind. "Thanks, for the coffee and Richard." They both moved aside whilst they waited for their drinks. "What you did for Richard and Maggie, I know you went up there to help them out and I really appreciate it. They both mean a lot to me and I'm glad that there was someone there for them when I couldn't be."

Cormac shook his head, "I just did what any decent person would do."

The two of them grabbed for the coffees placed in front of them and headed towards the hospital entrance. "Well, you were the only one in that lecture that got up to help..."

Mere couldn't help the small smile on her face. Cormac was easy to talk to and not as egotistical as she had initially thought. And she was very thankful to be proven wrong in this case. As the days went on, Meredith found herself looking more and more forward to her talks with Cormac. Even the short conversations they had, she found that she was always learning something new about him. Cormac was intriguing and Meredith wanted to find out everything she could.

"Are your boys in school today?" Meredith asked, turning the conversation to him.

Cormac let out a free laugh, "A fire couldn't get them out of bed today." Meredith laughed with him. "No, not today. I've said they can stay home today but the same rules do not apply for me."

The elevator doors opened revealing Jo and a smug look crossed her face when she saw Cormac and Meredith stepping into the elevator together. "Good morning, Mere, Dr Hayes."

"Please, call me Cormac."

Hayes pulled out of his phone and began texting someone which gave Jo the perfect opportunity to elbow Meredith and wink at her. Meredith had completely forgotten that all the doctors here were in fact a bunch of teenagers.

"Stop that!" Meredith tried to whisper tell but Cormac had already heard.

"Stop what? He looked up from his phone amused.

"Nothing!" Meredith tried to be as inconspicuous as possible.

"She wanted to know if you wanted to go for drinks with her. Tonight. After work." Jo quickly blurted out.

Cormac raised an eyebrow at Meredith, smirking a little. The elevator doors slid open and Jo quickly left without saying another word but a grin was on her face. Meredith was too stunned to say anything, she had not expected Jo to just come out with that. What did she think she was playing at?

"For drinks you say? Alright then, I'll meet you in the Attending Lounge at seven."

Meredith's eyes just grew wider, her mouth opening and closing trying to figure out what to say. But the door slid open again and Cormac left. He turned around just before the door closed and winked. 


	2. Get By With A Little Help

Cristina took the first flight to Seattle she could get and even that wasn't soon enough. She was still struggling to come to terms with the fact that Derek was dead. It wasn't right. He and Meredith were meant to grow old together, go grey and retire whilst their grandkids ran circles around them in the dream house. That was what was meant to happen. That was what Meredith deserved.

Cristina had no clue how her best friend was keeping it all together at a time like this. When Mere had rung her she wasn't sobbing down the phone. Her voice was just flat, as though she had completely given up and that scared Cristina more than if Mere had been screaming and crying down the phone. Mere had said she was trying to hold everything together for the kids and was trying to comfort everyone at the hospital. The latter had infuriated Cristina. What the hell were they all playing at? Surprisingly enough, Alex was the only reliable one through all of this. He was around the house whenever he had a spare minute. But she could not believe that Mere was still having to look after everyone else. Surely a situation like this warranted them holding her up and helping her get through this.

The flight to Seattle was, annoyingly, indirect with a six-hour layover. Cristina had screamed and yelled down the phone to the airline trying to find a flight that would get her to her best friend's side sooner but it was the best they could do. The best they could do. Her best friend's soulmate had just died leaving her with two kids and Christina was stuck in some random airport for the next six hours. When she finally boarded her second and last flight on the day, Cristina coils even try and relax. She had no clue what state Meredith would be in when she got there. Alex hadn't been a fountain of information. All he had said was that Mere was coping the best she could. What did that even mean!? How had she ended up entrusting Evil Spawn with her Person?

When the plane finally landed in Seattle, Cristina ended up being one of the first people of the plane. Her sharp elbows doing most of the work in getting her to the front. Snatching her luggage off of the carousel and nearly taking someone's head off in the process, not that that was a concern for her. Leaving the airport, Cristina looked around for a cab and pushed an elderly man in a suit out of the way and dove into the first one that appeared. She leant back in the seat as the cab drove her to her destination and text Mere three small words.

On my way.

Chucking whatever cash she had at the driver Cristina stumbled out of the car, suitcase behind her and rushed up the path of the dream house to the door. She had only managed to bang on it a couple of time before the door opened revealing a fairly well put together Meredith.

"Christina!" She hissed, "I just put the kids down for a nap."

Cristina just raised an eyebrow and Meredith stepped aside to let her in. A glance over the living area ended up shocking Cristina, it was the tidiest she had ever seen Meredith's place. When she eventually looked back at the young widow, the two of them collapsed in a hug. Meredith's shoulders were heaving up and down from the force of her son's that were muffled by Cristina's shoulder who found her own eyes watering. She gently stroked Mere's hair, hushing her. After a few minutes, Cristina began to guide Meredith over to the sofa and sat her down.

"Let me get you some water."

With tears still streaming down her face, Meredith just gave her a nod. She didn't trust herself to open her mouth, worried that all that would come out would be loud sobs that would end up waking her two children up and worrying them no doubt. Christina came back with a glass of water which Meredith accepted with shaky hands and took small sips from it whilst the two women sat in silence.

"Mere..."

"I haven't been able to cry, Cristina." Meredith put the glass down on the table in front of her and Cristina took the now empty hand. "I haven't been able to. There have been a million things to sort out with the kids, and the hospital, his family and his funeral and the will and I just... I just needed to keep myself together for all of it."

Meredith let out another cry and Cristina held her head to her chest, rubbing her back in soothing circles. "I've got you, Mere. I've got you."

Cristina stayed with Meredith and the kids whilst she was in Seattle, she knew that Meredith was going to need the support and it made sense. The next week was filled her helping plan Derek's funeral, running around after the kids and accepting a lot of casseroles that were dropped off at the house. Whilst people were around, Mere put on a strong front, she didn't get in front of the kids. She just pushed on. But when the guests left and the kids were in bed, Cristina would be her shoulder to cry on.

The day before the funeral, Meredith had spent the morning throwing up. Cristina had managed to give the kids breakfast and they were playing with their toys by the sofa when she finally managed to check in on a very pale looking Meredith, clutching the toilet.

"Everything okay in here?" Cristina left the door open so they could keep an ear out for the kids and sat down opposite Meredith.

"I feel like hell..."

"Probably something dodgy from the Chinese yesterday." Cristina shrugged.

"So why aren't you throwing up? We had the same thing." Cristina just shrugged in response again.

Meredith's eyes suddenly widened, "Cristina, what's the date today?"

"Uhh, the 16th I think, why?" It took a moment before Cristina suddenly clocked on, her face mirroring Meredith's.

"Are you?..."

"I don't know!"

"Do you have a test here?"

"No!" They both shot up.

"Okay, I'm going to go to the pharmacy and you're going to stay here and not freak out!"

"Cristina, I don't know if I can.."

She grabbed Meredith's shoulder before she could continue. "Let's not jump to conclusions here, okay. We'll take the test and then figure out where to go from there, okay?" Meredith nodded.

"Now I'm going to get that test for you. okay?"

Meredith took a deep breathe, "Okay but please don't be long."

Cristina hurried out of the bathroom, Meredith on her heels, grabbed her coat and Meredith's car keys and headed out of the house whilst Mere sat with her kids. Thirty minutes later Cristina walked back through the door with a small paper bag in hand.

"I would have been quicker but you love in the middle of nowhere." She handed Meredith the bag, who immediately went to the bathroom.

Hearing the sound of a door opening three minutes later, Cristina stood up and turned to face Meredith who just nodded at her before joined Cristina on the sofa, looking at her kids.

"He said he wanted more. The morning he left, he said he wanted more."

Cristina wasn't sure what to say to her.

"I don't know if I can do this Cristina..."

"Do you want to..."

Meredith whipped her head to look at Cristina wide-eyed, "No! Absolutely not! I'm just... scared."

"Mere..." Cristina wrapped an arm around Meredith, "You're an awesome, mom. And I know Derek isn't here but you coped without him when he was in D.C."

"This is different though, Cristina."

"I know it is. But Mere, you are the strongest person that I know. You've faced more loss in your life that most people will ever have to deal with by the time they're 90. So, trust me when I tell you that you can do this. You're superwoman, Mere."

Meredith just slowly nodded, "And you'll still be there for me to call?"

"Every single day, no matter what. You will always be my person, Mere."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone else miss Cristiana and Meredith moments? I would love to see Sandra Oh make an appearance on the show again. Let me know what kind of things you guys want to see!


	3. New Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't help but have another Meredith and Cormac piece. I have a million different ideas on the ways I think he would ask her out so here's another one for you. I hope you guys enjoy and let me know what you would like to see more of!

Meredith ran down the hospital corridors before finally getting to the maternity ward and stopped in front of the door that she had been looking for. Gently knocking, she popped her head around.

"Hey..." she whispered tentatively.

She was greeted by two grinning and tired faces. "Mere, come in." Amelia sounded exhausted but there was pure joy in her face.

"I hope you don't mind but I came as soon as you text." Meredith didn't want to impose, she knew what those first few hours... days... were like after birth.

"The whole point in me texting you was for you to get your butt down here! I want you to meet your niece!" If it wouldn't have caused her pain, Amelia would've been bouncing up and down on the bed.

"It's a girl!?" Mere yelled in a whisper, eyes immediately going to the small bundle that Link was lovingly cradling.

"Yeah, a gorgeous little girl, coming in at seven pounds!" The pride in Link's voice was obvious and it made Meredith smile even more. He was taking to being a father like a duck to water and that little girl already had him wrapped around her little finger. There was no doubt about that.

"Do you want to hold her?" Amelia asked.

"Please!" Meredith placed herself down in the chair as Link carefully placed the baby into her arms.

The little girl looked so cosy in her swaddled state, eyes closed and mouth opening and closing to form a small "o". Meredith entire world, at that moment, was consumed with the new life that she held. She couldn't tear her eyes away from her niece, she didn't want to. It had been a while since she had held a baby, that wasn't a patient, in her arms.

"Meet Alina Shepard-Lincoln." Link's awestruck voice whispered, his gaze still on his daughter.

Meredith couldn't help but smirk, "That last name is a bit of a mouthful."

Amelia just rolled her eyes and defended their choice, "It saved on the arguments!"

"Well, I happen to think that Alina is a very pretty name for a very smart little lady!" Meredith cooed at the baby.

"I'm glad to hear it, wouldn't want her godmother hating her name." Amelia laughed.

Meredith's head shot up and looked between Link and Amelia. "Wait- what?"

Link had taken a seat next to Amelia bed, holding her hand. "We were going to ask..."

But he was cut off by Amelia, "Look, we're not religious or anything so it's not like there'll be a christening. So, maybe the term godmother is a little redundant here. But the 'keeper of child in case of any mishaps' doesn't flow as well, you know? But if you prefer that title we could go with that-"

"Babbling!" Link and Meredith said at the same time, laughing.

"Right, sorry!" Amelia shook her head before getting back on track. "I'm blaming baby brain. But Link and I were thinking, the world is a scary place. The three of us know that and if anything were to ever happen to me and Link we would want to know that Alina was with someone we could trust to love her and raise her to be a strong, fearless woman. And you were the first person we both thought of." Tears were brimming in Amelia's eyes as she spoke.

Meredith felt something tightening in her chest as Amelia spoke. "I- are you sure? I mean I did run off with my two kids whilst pregnant when Derek died."

Amelia shrugged, "Okay, that definitely wasn't your finest moment..."

This time it was Link who cut in, "But you've had a million brilliant moments. Not just as a surgeon but as a mother."

"This is what we both want," Amelia gave Link's hand a squeeze. "As long as you're okay with that."

A grin was on Meredith's face, "I would love that."

Amelia let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, good because I don't think anyone would cope with being second best if you said no."

Meredith let out a hearty laugh which caused Alina to stir so Meredith rocked her gently on her shoulder whilst walking her around the room. Her goddaughter. Carefully she handed Alina back to her father who resumed the walking whilst Meredith sat next to Amelia.

"Derek would be so proud of you right now." Meredith had taken Amelia's hand, holding it tight.

"You think so?"

"Oh, I know so. He would have spoilt that little girl so much." They both laughed as they remembered how Derek was around his own daughter and other nieces.

"You know, he would have been proud of you too, Mere." Meredith opened her mouth to protest but Amelia carried on. "You've been raising three amazing kids as a single mom, you're making strides in your field and you're carrying on in your life. He wants to see you happy, Mere. Even if that was with a certain gorgeous, Irish Chief of Paediatrics."

Meredith couldn't help but roll her eyes at that last part. "That sounds awfully specific."

"Hmm, does it? Good thing I know where to find one, don't you think?" The smug look on Amelia's face was beginning to irk Meredith a little.

"Amelia, you just gave birth. Do you not think it's a bit early to be playing matchmaker." Meredith didn't know how Amelia even had the capacity to think about anything else right now. After both of her births, all Meredith had wanted to do was to sleep and not have to think about anything other than keeping her child alive.

"She's got a point, Grey," Link butted in as she placed Alina down in her plastic cot and sat on the end of the bed by Amelia's legs.

"Really? You're in on this, too?" Meredith raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, I'm just saying, I've seen the way he looks at you."

Meredith was getting a little flustered now. "He doesn't look at me like anything!"

"Suuuure he doesn't!" Amelia sarcastic tone was not appreciated by her sister. "Anytime you're around and he's in the same room his eyes won't leave you. He's always watching you!"

"Oh, because that's not creepy at all. Hayes constantly watching me and plotting to kill me." Meredith rolled her eyes, why would him watching her like a hawk be an indication of him liking her.

Amelia slapped Meredith's arm. "Ow!" She rubbed the spot.

"Oh, shut up. I didn't even hit that hard! And you know what I mean!"

"Why are we discussing this? Shouldn't we be discussing baby stuff?" Meredith tried her best to deflect the conversation away from Cormac Hayes.

"Eh, everyone is going to want to take about baby stuff! I'm fed up just thinking about it. I want to talk about you and Hayes!"

"There is no me and Hayes!"

"Not yet but there could be if you give him a chance," Amelia sang.

Meredith sighed, "Amelia..."

"You said that you and DeLuca were history, right?"

"I mean, yeah..."

Amelia probed, "Do you still want to be with him?"

"No, definitely not. After everything that's happened... I don't think either of us wants that." Meredith shook her head. Whatever she and Andrew had was definitely in the past, it wasn't something that she wanted to revisit.

Amelia nodded, "Okay, good. So, what's stopping you?"

"He just thinks of me as a friend." Meredith wasn't sure how many times she was going to have to keep bringing that point up but Amelia didn't seem to understand.

"But you don't?" Link rejoined the conversation which made Meredith shake her head. Why the hell was she being ambushed?

"I never said that."

"But do you think of him as just a friend?" Amelia was not planning on letting go of this until she got a satisfactory answer.

"I mean, I'd be blind if I didn't think he was good looking..."

"See!? Plus, he was a gift," Amelia reminded her with a smirk.

Confusion was written across Links face. "What?"

Amelia waved her hand behind her to shush him. "I'll explain later." Her full attention was back on Meredith. "You guys would make an incredibly hot couple. What's stopping you?"

Before Meredith could even open her mouth Amelia started again. "Absolutely nothing, now go!"

"You're kicking me out?" Meredith lifted a brow.

"Don't make me call security!"

"I own the hospital!"

"Link!"

"Alright, fine I'm going!" Meredith walked over to where Alina lay, blissfully unaware of the antics going on around her. "She's crazy but your mom is a good one." She whispered.

"Hey, I heard that!" Amelia called at Meredith's back as she departed the room.

On her way to the elevator, she passed the nursery, Cormac standing outside the window in a pink apron. Wincing, Meredith hoped she could get past undetected. After the conversation she had with Amelia just now, talking to him would be a little awkward and she couldn't be dealing with that. And if word got back to Amelia that they had both spoken, then Meredith would not hear the end of it. But going past the nursery was the quickest way to the elevators and she could not be bothered to traipse her way around the entire ward just to avoid one man. He did seem quite engrossed in whatever was on the chart he was looking. It should be fine, she would just quietly creep past. No one would know, Hayes wouldn't see her. Life would be great, no awkward conversations, everything is all good...

"Grey, what are you doing up here?"

"Damnit" Meredith whispered under her breathe. Why the hell did he need to look up then!?

Awkwardly she walked closer to Cormac, knowing it would just look weird if she kept three feet of distance between them. To avoid his gaze she looked into the nursery, full of babbling, healthy babies. "Uh, hi, Hayes."

A lopsided smile graced Cormac's face as he watched her looking at the newborns. "You know, I've been working with you for months and I don't think I've ever heard you call me by my first name."

"I could say the same for you," Meredith still hadn't dared to look at his face.

"Touche... well, maybe it's something that we should both try then, Meredith."

Meredith shut her eyes, the way he said her name made butterflies erupt in her stomach. Why was she feeling like a fifteen-year-old again? This was stupid, she was a grown woman, with three kids and a big job. She could not be going crazy just because a hot guy had said her name. She cleared her throat, "Cormac."

"Wasn't so bad now, was it?" He grinned.

Meredith finally looked at him and gave him a sarcastic smile. The awkwardness and tension knotted in her stomach were beginning to ease away. "Still with the jokes I see?"

"What can I say, if it paid better I would be a comedian."

Meredith laughed in spite of herself, which made Cormac's smile even wider. She didn't seem to laugh much around the hospital, he knew that they were around dying people but still. It felt as if she was holding something back but when she laughed, she seemed free. It bought along a warm feeling for Cormac, one that he hadn't felt since his wife had passed away. It was a feeling that he had battled with. He had felt guilty when it had first happened, as though he was betraying his wife. But she had wanted so badly for him to move on after she had left. Cormac hadn't thought that it would be possible to find that kind of love again, not that he loved Meredith but he could see things going somewhere. If he thought she even felt the same way.

"So, what are you doing around these parts then?" He bought the conversation back to his original question. Hayes was pretty on top of his department and he was sure that no one had pages for a consult from General recently.

"Oh, Amelia had the baby and she texted me to come and meet my niece."

Cormac's eyebrows raised in joy, "Shepard had her baby?"

Meredith nodded, "Yeah, a little girl, her name's Alina."

"Well, I'll make sure to do a round of the little on then and make her my patient."

"I'm sure that Amelia would love that."

Cormac took a deep breath and followed Meredith's gaze to the babies. It was now or never. He was only going to have the courage to do this once and if he chickened out now he wasn't sure if he would be able to ask her this again. "Babies..." He started with a long pause.

Meredith just stared at him curiously, waiting for him to continue. Cormac wanted to hit his head against the windows. Babies. Why would he start off like that? And then not say anything else? She was going to end up thinking that he was a right weirdo. And she was going to think that he was even weirder because he was leaving this gap longer and longer. Damnit, he really needed to say something.

"They, uh, make you think of new beginnings, don't they?" Cormac blurted it out as quickly as he could and Meredith wasn't sure whether she was meant to agree or whether he was going to continue talking. Thankfully, Cormac carried on. "It just gives you hope... that things will be okay."

Meredith's eyes were now locked on Cormac's profile. How hadn't she realised how attractive he looked from this side. The stubble... his nose... okay, yeah, maybe he did like him, a tiny bit.

"Look, Meredith," Cormac turned his body so that he was fully facing Meredith. "I've been wanting to ask you if you wanted to go out for a drink sometime..."

Meredith looked around, "Who? Me?" She asked, pointing at herself, a mischievous smile on her.

"Oh haha, Grey, yes, you."

"Hmmm..." Meredith put her hands in her white lab coat, rocking back and forth on her heels. She may as well have some fun with this since she knew what her final answer was going to end up being. "Yeah, what's a drink between friends, right?"

Cormac winced comically, "Oh, Grey, come on. You're killing me here!"

"I have no idea what you're on about." She looked around innocently.

"I'm sure you don't. Fine!" Cormac suddenly got down on one knee just as there were a gaggle of doctors and nurses on their way past the pair. They all came to a halt when they saw Cormac on the floor.

"Cormac, what the hell are you doing." Meredith had crouched a little and was yelling at him as quietly as she could.

"Meredith Grey!" His thick Irish accent projected all the way down the hall. "Will you please allow me to take you on a date?"

At this point, Meredith had gone bright red and could feel herself slowly dying from embarrassment. She began to tug on Cormac's arm trying to get him to stand up whilst straining a smile to their audience in the hopes that they would leave. "Hayes, can you please get the hell up?" She whispered through gritted teeth.

"Nope. Not until you give me an answer."

"Fine!" Meredith finally relented, annoyed that her plan had completely backfired on her. This was going to be around the hospital within the next hour and she knew that her sisters were never going to let her live this down.

"I'm sorry, Meredith, I couldn't hear you." Cormac looked up at her grinning, her tugging not even having the slightest effect in moving him from the floor.

Grumbling under her breath, Meredith knew that there was only one way that she would be able to put an end to her embarrassment right now. "Yes, I'll go on a date with you," she said as loudly as she was able to bring herself to.

Finally, Cormac stood up, turning to the audience and giving them a huge grin as they all clapped and cheered. When he turned back to Meredith, she was rolling her eyes but ultimately glad that the group seemed to be dispersing now that they had gotten what they wanted.

"I hope you're happy." She playfully hit him on his chest.

"Over the moon, I'll have you know." They both wore matching grins on their faces until Meredith's pager went off.

"I'm sorry, I'm needed in the pit."

Cormac just shook his head, "Go, I'll catch up with you later."

Meredith sent him an apologetic smile before running down the corridor, Cormac watching her retreating figure with her lab coat flying behind her. He couldn't help but think how lucky he was that he had managed to get a date with Meredith Grey.


	4. Promises, Promises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing beats a little bit of MerDer

Meredith Grey had not been expecting to see police light out of the window of her home. They lived in the middle of nowhere, police lights were not a common sight to see. Her stomach dropped as she walked over to the door. She was struggling not to keep her mind running to the worst-case scenario but that was difficult for her. Derek wasn't answering his phone, the White House said he hadn't arrived and now the police were knocking her door. None of this really looked like a good thing.

With a trembling hand, Meredith finally opened the front door. "Is this the residence of Dr Derek Shepard?" The deep voice spoke, and Meredith couldn't gauge any kind of emotion out of it. It was the same tone she used with her patients when there wasn't any good news to give. She felt her stomach plummet to the floor.

"Yes, I'm his wife." Meredith was surprised that she was able to speak without her voice cracking or shaking from fear.

"May we come in, please, Mrs Shepard?"

Meredith just nodded numbly, not even bothering to correct the officers. She moved aside so both police officers would enter the house and shut the door behind them. Motioning for them to sit off the couch, Meredith sat where she had been just moments before biting on her lip and unable to keep still. She was thankful that both of the kids were tucked up in bed and fast asleep right now.

"Mrs Shepard, we're sorry to tell you that Dr Shepard was involved in a road traffic accident earlier today."

It suddenly felt as though the floor had disappeared from beneath her and it took all of Meredith's will to continue to listen to the officer.

"He's currently in Dillard Medical Centre-"

Meredith cut him off quickly, "Derek's still alive?"

The officer nodded at her, "Yes, ma'am, he is. He's just gotten out of surgery from what the hospital let us know and they're waiting for him to come around. That's all they were able to let us know but he is in a stable condition as of right now."

"Can I go see him?" The words quickly flew out of her mouth.

"Of course, we're able to take you straight to him."

"Thank you but I've got two young kids and I'll need to bring them with me." Meredith was already grabbing a few things for the kids and stuffing them into their backpacks. She needed to get to the hospital as soon as she could.

"Let us at least escort you down there, ma'am. To make sure you get there safely." They could see Meredith spinning around the room like a hurricane getting everything together and felt it would be safer if they at least accompanied her there. They knew what families could be like when they find out that their loved ones were in hospital.

"Uh- yeah," Meredith was barely paying attention what they were saying, "That would be great."

She made her way into Zola's room, quickly getting her coat on the little girl and trying her best to answer calmly to the thousand questions that Zola was asking her. After setting Zola down on the couch, she ran into Bailey's room who wasn't as talkative and happily let him mother put his coat on him. Making her way back into the living room, holding a sleepy Bailey in one arm, Meredith grabbed her own handbag and the kids bag, hanging them on her arm and then grabbed Zola's arm. She jumped a little when she saw the two police officers standing by the door, completely forgetting that they were still in the house.

"Okay we're ready to go," the officers nodded at her as she made her way out of the door and into her car. Placing Zola and Bailey into their car seats she got behind the wheel and took a few deep breaths.

Derek was in a car accident but he's okay. He was in surgery but he's stable now.

She kept chanting those sentences in her head, reminding her to keep calm. He was alive, that was the main thing, anything else they could deal with. But he was alive and that was all that mattered to her.

The drive to Dillard Medical took around an hour and a half, which was an excruciatingly long time to Meredith who just wanted to see with her own eyes that her husband was okay. She knew that the journey would have been a lot longer if it weren't for the fact that she had a police escort, she was thankful that they even offered to do that for her. Parking in the first empty spot she was able to find, which was thankfully towards the main entrance of the hospital, Meredith got out and woke the kids up who had managed to fall back to sleep during the car journey.

"Would you like us to stay with you, ma'am?" One of the officers asked her. They had parked in the spot next to her.

"No, no. Thank you for your help though." Meredith didn't want to seem rude, but she just wanted to get inside and see Derek.

The officers seem to understand her situation though, "Of course, there'll be a doctor waiting for you and social services will also be there just to keep an eye on your children." Meredith nodded, knowing the protocol for these types of situations. "We hope everything will be okay for you all." The two officers got into their car and Meredith didn't wait around long enough to see them drive off.

Barrelling towards the hospital door, Meredith could feel the knot of nerves in her stomach. "Mommy?" A sleepy voice called. Meredith looked down at her daughter and stopped for a moment. "Why are we at the hospital?"

"Your daddy has a bit of a boo-boo and needed to get fixed up." Meredith tried to explain in a way that wouldn't scare her eldest.

"But why didn't he go to our hospital?" Zola's big brown eyes were full of curiosity, trying to understand what was going on.

Meredith crouched down with Bailey still in her arms so that she was at eye line with Zola. "Well, daddy got hurt a little far away from our hospital, so they had to take him here because it was closer."

Zola just nodded in understanding and Meredith placed a kiss on her daughter's forehead before standing up and making her way through the doors again. She went up to the nurses' desk and gave Derek's name. They had told her that they'd just paged the doctor on his case to come down and meet her and social services came to take her took sleepy kids off of her hands for a little.

"Mrs Shepard?" A rough voice pulled her out of her spiralling thoughts.

Meredith looked up at the middle-aged man in scrubs who she assumed was her husband's doctor. "It's Dr Grey."

The man's eyes shot up in surprise, "Dr Grey, I apologise. I'm Dr Castello, your husband's doctor and this is Dr Blake, she's also working on your husband's case." Meredith hadn't even noticed the woman standing behind Dr Castello.

"Is he okay?" She didn't care about pleasantries right now.

"He's in a stable condition. He came in with a punctured lung, three broken ribs, a perforated spleen as well as a hematoma amongst a few other broken bones with his right leg. Now, we carried out some extensive surgery and all of the clots in his brain have been removed and we put a chest tube in and his breathing has improved greatly and set his bones back into place, although he may need another surgery for his leg if it doesn't look like it's healing within the next five days." Meredith nodded taking everything in but impatient at being kept from seeing Derek.

"We'll take you up to him." The other doctor, Dr Blake, encourage her superior to hurry up, sensing Meredith's impatience.

Meredith followed them to the elevator and once they reached the fifth floor the doctors gave her the room number and let her see her husband by herself. Before she opened the door to the room, Meredith closed her eyes and took a deep breath, summoning all the courage and strength she needed to see her husband in a less than perfect state. After a moment, she finally opened the door and her stomach lurched at the sight of her husband lying helpless on a hospital bed. Derek's leg was in a cast, his head was bandaged, and we had a chest tube in his mouth. The beeping on the monitors stopped the room from being in complete silence. Meredith made her way over to the chair by his bed and took a limp hand. She hadn't even realised that tears were slipping down her face.

"You can't scare me like this. Do you understand? You cannot go and scare me like this, Derek Shepard. Not when you left the house promising me the whole world. I mean, this is pretty far to go just to get out of your promises, don't you think?" She sat in silence for a few moments, still holding onto Derek's hand with both of hers, lost in her own thoughts.

After a while, Meredith felt a slight pressure in her hands and looked up and Derek who had begun to choke on his breathing tube. It took Meredith a lot to fight back every instinct that told her to help him. Instead, she pressed the nurse's button and ran to the door calling for a doctor. When the staff eventually got to Derek, they ushered her out of the room and closed the blinds, shutting Meredith off from her husband waking up. It didn't take them long to open the door again and invite her back into the room though. She was greeted to a set of blue, tired eyes. Derek gave her a small smile that seemed to use up every bit of energy that he had.

Dr Castello quickly stepped into her line of vision before she could say anything to Derek. "Dr Grey, the anaesthesia has worn off of your husband," Meredith suppressed an eye roll, that much was obvious. "All his vitals seem to be okay and we've taken out his chest tube. Obviously, some grogginess is expected but his brain function looks good. We have no cause for concern right now." With a quick nod at husband and wife, Dr Castello ushered everyone out of the room leaving the two alone.

Meredith immediately went over to Derek's side whose smile had grown tenfold. "Hey," he whispered as she stood next to him.

"Don't you dare 'hey' me Derek Christopher Shepard! Do you know what you have put me through these past few hours! Do not smile at me like that!" But Meredith could already feel her resolve slipping when Derek gave her his signature McDreamy look and suddenly she was laughing and dragged the chair closer to his bed. "I hate you."

"No, you don't. You love me, you wouldn't be yelling at me like this otherwise." His voice was hoarse, but Meredith couldn't care less. Being able to hear his voice again made everything feel right.

"I hate that you're right," she muttered as they intertwined their fingers together.

"Now, can I have a kiss from my wife? I did just have a near-death experience."

Meredith shot Derek a glare, "I would hit you if you weren't injured. Do not joke about that."

Derek pouted, "I'm sorry but I still want that kiss." He gave her a cheeky grin.

"Ugh, fine." Rolling her eyes, Meredith got up and smiled, giving him a gentle kiss on the lips. "Don't ever do this to me again."

"I promise, you'll have me until we're both old a grey." Meredith sat back on the chair, never letting go of Derek's hand, knowing that he was okay and their family was together.


	5. Mother-Daughter Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is slightly shorter one but I love how Meredith is with all her kids and how Zola has grown up. Hope you enjoy!

"Mommy, why doesn't Andrew come around anymore?" Zola's voice perked up as she sat with her mother on the sofa.

Her younger siblings had been put to bed and Zola was allowed an extra hour before she had to get some sleep. She loved spending that hour with Meredith when it could just be her and her mother. She loved Bailey and Ellis but it was nice to know that she had Meredith's full attention.

"Uh..." Meredith knew that her eldest was extremely observant, nothing could get past her. She was lucky that they had gone a few weeks without Zola asking about Andrew.

"Lovebug, there are a few reasons for that." Meredith didn't even know where to begin with this. "Mommy and Andrew aren't seeing each other anymore."

Zola looked up with worry and Meredith's face. "Why?"

"Sometimes, Zozo, things don't always work out the way we planned them to. Right now, Andrew needs to focus and look after himself and mommy just wants to spend time with you three but   
that doesn't mean I don't care about him anymore, okay? And it doesn't mean that he doesn't care about you."

Zola nodded, slowly taking in everything Mere was saying. "Are you okay, mommy?"

Meredith let out a laugh, her she was trying to make sure Zola was okay with everything and her daughter was trying to make sure she wasn't hurt. Mere pulled her daughter in for a tight hug.

"As long as I've got you, Bailey and Ellis and we're all happy then I'm more than okay."

Grinning, Zola kissed Meredith's cheek and ran off into the kitchen. Meredith watched her not-so-little girl run wondering what in the world she was up to. All of her kids kept her on her toes but Zola came out with things that a forty-year-old would from life experience, it often took Meredith off guard. She knew that Derek would have laughed at some of the things came out of their daughter who hadn't even hit double digits. He would have laughed at a lot of things about his three kids. A wave of grief washed over Meredith, her stomach dropped and her chest in knots. Thoughts of Derek no longer being there sometimes hit her harder than she expected to. Even after all these years, there were times when the grief was so fresh that she had to take a moment to remember how far she had come. To remember that Derek would have been proud to see where she was now.

Meredith was brought out of her thoughts when Zola came skidding in, launching herself on the sofa next to Meredith. She held out two spoons and a tub of ice cream.

"Auntie Maggie and Auntie Amelia said that ice cream fixes everything when you're sad. And I got your favourite! Strawberry!" Zola looked up to her with a toothy grin.

Meredith couldn't help but chuckle, how had she even survived before her kids had come into her life? Grabbing one spoon and opening the tub of ice, mother and daughter started to dig in. "You cannot tell your brother and sister about this!"

"I promise!"


	6. I Don't Think I Would Mind That At All

He wasn't entirely sure what was happening to him. It must have been the exhaustion from the shifts. Covid-19 was kicking the hospital's arse and whenever the paeds ward was quiet, Cormac tried to ease the load in the other departments. The staff all looked dead on their feet but somehow, they managed to pull through each day.

He missed his boys, not seeing them face-to-face for weeks on end was not something that was helping the situation but at least Abigail's sister was with them. At least they had someone that could keep an eye on them. Sighing, Cormac knocked on the hospital room door before peeking his head in.

"Alright if I come in, Grey?"

Meredith looked up from her tablet. She had forgone the hospital gown for an old Dartmouth top and grey sweats. Whilst she still looked exhausted, this was a definite improvement from seeing her in a coma. Cormac hadn't expected the relief that flooded through his body when he heard that she was awake. He had waited for her family to go and see her first, knowing that they would be ramming down the door to talk to her. But that had taken longer than expected since the entire bloody hospital considered her family. He'd lost track of the number of times he had walked past her room in the hopes that no one else would be in there. But at last, at 7 pm, ten hours after she had woken up there was not another person on sight, she didn't seem to be talking to anyone on her tablet and no doctors were checking her stats.

"I mean, you're already halfway in this room, you may as well." She had that mischievous glint her eyes that Cormac had come to realise were almost a permanent fixture. One that he had missed seeing. Her voice still had a croak to it, a reminder that she had just battled a virus that could have killed her.

Cormac fully entered the room and stood by the foot of her bed before flicking through her chart. Meredith raised a brow at him which he ignored, much to her annoyance. The last thing she needed was someone else hovering over her. Maggie and Amelia were doing a grand job of that.

"Your stats are looking good today, Grey." He continued looking through her chart.

"They better since I'm not in a coma anymore," she muttered, annoyed that he was still looking at them. She wanted company, not another doctor.

Cormac barked out a laugh and put her chart back. His eyes softened as she looked at her and that weird feeling came over him again. His heart started to race; his stomach felt like a million butterflies had been let out of a cage. God, he really needed to get some rest. Maybe he needed to get a test, just in case.

"Told you that you would beat this damn virus, look at you now."

Meredith groaned as she adjusted herself to sit up straighter. It was still exhausting for her to move. "Oh yeah, I'm just the picture of health."

Her sarcasm made him knew that she was on the road to recovery. It hadn't been long ago that she had admitted to him that she was scared of dying. That moment of vulnerability was something that was shared between just the two of them. He had never seen Meredith Grey like that. From the moment he had met her, Meredith had been a battle-axe of a woman. She showed no fear and took no prisoners. Cormac had definitely not been expecting her to open up to him that much.

"Compared to just last night, I would say so."

"Sorry. I am thankful, you know, not to be dying but Bailey isn't let me work for at least another two weeks." Meredith groaned, completely unimpressed with the rules she had been given. She was needed here at the hospital, as a doctor. Not a patient. She knew that this place needed all the staff that it could get so what was the point in sending her home for 14 days.

"Grey, you've just battled a virus that has put the world on its knees. Two weeks away from work is the least you deserve."

Meredith rolled her eyes at him and Hayes couldn't help the upturning on his lips at her little action. She was a firecracker. "Deserve? I've literally been lying in a bed for weeks! It's you guys that deserve two weeks off."

"You were ill, you were in a coma and you still need to rest. Grey, take the two weeks. Go home and spend time with your kids, hold them close. They would have missed their mother. And you know as well as I do that when you come back, you aren't going to be able to see them as much."

That had silenced Meredith completely. If she didn't take those two weeks for herself, then she would definitely do it for her kids. They hadn't known the full extent of what had happened to her, though she guessed that her Zo-Zo had probably managed to figure it out by now. She could have two weeks of holding her babies close and getting to spend some time with her new nephew. It wasn't a bad deal.

"Fine," she grumbled.

"Sorry, Grey, couldn't hear you there."

"I said, fine!" She yelled at him.

Cormac threw his head back and laughed, "You know, you're far too stubborn for your own good." That weird feeling had intensified even more. Now he was worried.

"So, I've been told. Anyway, why have you decided to grace me with your presence?"

Cormac clutched his chest over his heart, "You wound me, Grey. Can't a man just care about his co-worker?"

But you don't just care about her as a co-worker, a small voice in his head said and he tried to push it away.

"Mhm," she murmured. "Of course, but I'm pretty sure you told me that you couldn't care less about me or my kids," Meredith teased him with a cheeky smile on her face.

"Well, that might have been a small lie," his voice had dipped to a whisper. "I've missed you while you've been out Grey." That admission had shocked him, he hadn't even realised the words that had come out of his mouth.

Meredith shared at him in shock, "Oh." She stumbled over her words; she had not been expecting him to say that.

Before she had caught the virus the two of them had been spending more time together. Whiskey in his office, tequila in hers, although he always complained about her choice of drink. They had shared more about their lives during between the drinks and had gotten to know each other better. Meredith had felt that attraction to him, felt herself wanting to spend more time with him but she hadn't said anything. She knew that Cormac hadn't been with anyone with Abigail had passed away and moving on was something that he had to do in his own time and that was if he even wanted to move on. So, she had decided to stay quiet. The last thing she had expected was to wake up from a coma and have Hayes tell her that he missed her.

"I've missed you too," she admitted to him in a voice just as quiet. "it's nice to be back in the land of the living and see you again."

The butterflies flooded his stomach all over again and Cormac finally realised that this was the way he had felt when he had first spoken to Abigail. In the back of his mind, he had known for quite a while that his feelings for Meredith Grey were no longer platonic but had tried not to think about it too much. But upon hearing that Meredith was awake and had finally tested negative for Covid-19, his feeling no longer wanted to stay locked away and he was struggling to keep them at bay.

"Maybe you wouldn't mind joining me for a drink and some food when you're finally allowed back. We could do lunch, in my office?" This wasn't his ideal first date but given the state of the world and their jobs, it was the best that he could do. He just hoped she wouldn't laugh at his lame attempt.

"I don't think I would mind that at all."


	7. Words and Smiles and Things

"Grey," Meredith looked up from her tablet to see Nathan Riggs standing there in a set of navy scrubs and a lab coat on, there was a crooked smile on his face.

"Nathan!" She put her tablet down and walked over to him, enveloping him in a hug. "What are you doing here? Are Megan and Farouk around?'

The smile dropped from Nathan's face momentarily. "It's-uh- we aren't together anymore, Grey."

Meredith stepped back and looked at Nathan. She didn't understand, it had been years since she had last seen him since they'd last contacted each other. He had been so content when he had left with Megan and Farouk, it had never been something she had resented him for. They'd both known that if Derek had walked through the door again then she would have gone to him straight away without a second thought. Why in the world was Nathan back here without Megan?

"What happened?"

Nathan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It wasn't going to work. We tried, for years, but it just wasn't right. There were too many cracks, Meredith. I care for her, but I just don't love her like I used to."

Meredith had no clue what to say to him. What were people meant to say in these situations? She had known that Megan and Nathan had their issues before she had disappeared and that they were probably going to need to work through a lot of things, but she hadn't expected this. Meredith had honestly thought that they would manage to make it work. After not hearing from him in so long she just assumed that Nathan was happily settled with his family. Instead, he was here and dressed like he worked at the hospital...

"What are you doing here?"

Nathan chuckled, "Always straight to the point, aren't you, Grey?" He shoved his hands into his coat pockets. "I was talking to Owen on the phone, I thought he would be angrier, but he seemed to understand. Told me that there was a cardio attending job that was open. So, here I am."

"So, you just drove all the way back to Seattle to work here? Did you even talk to Megan about this?"

Nathan clenched his jaw, "Really, you still think the worst of me, Grey? After all this time? Do you think I wanted this to happen? That I didn't want to just be happy with Megan and Farouk, my own little family? Not wondering why I still don't have a stable relationship!?"

Meredith flinched at his tone. She realised that a lot of the nurses had now stopped what they were doing to stare at the two of them. Grabbing Nathan by the arm, she dragged him into one of the nearby on-call rooms. He moved without much resistance which she was thankful for. She'd just gotten through the latest lot of hospital gossip after being fired, having a criminal record and having Andrew break-up with her. She really didn't need anything else.

"Look, I'm sorry." She closed the on-call room door as Nathan sat down on a bed. "I didn't mean it like that. It just seems too sudden."

"To you, maybe. We haven't spoken in a while but Megan and I, we've been having problems for a while. Things felt awkward and we both realised we were better as friends. Life's too short, we both knew that."

Nodding along, Meredith was glad that he had calmed down. She hadn't meant to sound like he hadn't tried with Megan, even if it had come out like that. Nathan was the kind of person that would always put his full effort in. She was just still in shock that he was here in front of her for so long. She may hate to admit it, but Meredith had missed him. Having him back here, especially after everything that had happened over the last few months, was a welcome surprise.

"I'm really sorry that things didn't work out for you guys but I'm glad you're back."

A signature cocky smile graced Nathan's face again, he stood up, towering over Meredith's small frame. "Missed me, did you, Grey?"

Meredith scoffed and rolled her eyes. "You wish, Riggs." She looked around the room, "We should probably get out of here before the rumour mill starts turning."

Laughing, Nathan opened the door and gestured for Meredith to leave first. Taking a glance up and down the corridor, she walked out when she realised that there was no one else around. 

Meredith began walking her way over to the elevator, she needed to head up to her office for some files for a newly admitted patient she was working on. Nathan quickly fell into step with her. 

She glanced over to see him unashamedly staring at her as they walked. Shaking her head, she pressed the button, waiting for the lift door to open. She ignored Nathan as she stepped into the lift with him still following her. When the lift doors closed Meredith turned to face him.

"What are you doing?"

"What do you mean, Grey? I'm just following you." Nathan shrugged.

Raising an eyebrow, Meredith looked ahead at the doors again. "Why?"

"Maggie told me that you needed a cardio consult on your patient, so, here I am!"

Of course, Maggie had something to do with this. It was so typical of her little sister to stick her oar into everyone else's life, but Meredith couldn't help but love her for that. "Here you are..." Meredith muttered.

"So, let's keep things strictly professional for now, Grey."

"Excuse me, when do I not keep things strictly professional?"

The lift doors finally opened allowing Meredith to escape Nathan's piercing gaze. "I think can recall a few moments," there was a glint in his eye that made Meredith's stomach flip. "So, I hear you have a criminal record now."

Meredith stopped in her tracks, "How do you know about that!?"

"Not even trying to deny it, I see. Owen told me, I always ask after you, Mere." His tone had softened towards the end.

"Stop that!" Meredith continued to walk, trying to get away from Nathan.

"Stop what?" There was no getting away from this man as he jogged to catch up with her.

She opened the door to her office, hoping that Nathan wouldn't follow her inside, but he had no boundaries and followed her right in, taking a seat on the sofa in there. "Whatever you keep doing. With your words and smile and things!"

"How very specific of you, Grey." Nathan leant back, resting his arms on the back of the sofa.

Sighing, Meredith picked up the file she needed and leant her back against the front of her desk. "You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't." His shrug just infuriated her.

"Nathan, stop it. You've just come back here and you're saying these things that sound more than friendly and you've just broken up with Megan and-"

Nathan stood up from his seat and took swift steps towards Meredith, holding the top of her arms. "How about you just take a break for a second?" He quickly cut her off, "Megan and I broke up five months ago. I wasn't that recent and even before that, we knew that it wasn't going to last. We just weren't admitting it to each other. And maybe I am being more than friendly, but can you blame me, Meredith?"

"Yes! Nathan, just stop. It's been so long, and we've changed."

"I know, you went and won a Catherine Fox Foundation award."

Meredith rolled her eyes, reluctantly pulling away from his grasp. "You know that isn't what I mean."

"I know but I also know from very reliable sources that you aren't seeing anyone. So, there's nothing really holding either of us back from getting to know each other again."

Taking some time to mull over his words, Meredith bit her lip. "I only just got out of a relationship, Riggs. I'm not even trying to jump into anything else right now."

"I'm not asking you to. All I'm asking is that you keep an open mind when it comes to us. Let us get to know each other again, to be friends again and we can just see what happens from there."

Although she was still a little apprehensive, Meredith slowly nodded making Nathan grin and open his arms. "What?" He asked when she didn't move. "Friends do hug you know."

Laughing, Meredith put the file down and wrapped her arms around his body. A voice in the back of her mind told her things were about to get a whole lot better in her life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have mixed feeling about Nathan's time in the show. Part of me is happy that he found Megan, the other part of me kind of wished he had stayed with Meredith to see what happened. I don't know, I don't think we really got to see enough of their relationship to really know how I feel about them.


	8. I Don't Care

Things had been easy going for Meredith and Cormac. They'd gone out for a drink together, ended up sitting for lunch at the same table most days and had spent countless hours across an operating table from each other. The entire hospital could tell that something was going on but no one said anything. Meredith's sisters couldn't get any information out of her, she just smirked at them and walked away.

Truth be told, Meredith wasn't entirely sure where she stood with Cormac. Sure, they spent a lot of time together and he was flirty with her. Very flirty. He'd begun to slip his hand into hers when they walked to their cars after work but that was where it ended. Mer hadn't wanted to push him. She knew that he hadn't been with anyone since Abigail had passed away and whilst she was pretty sure of her feeling for him, she knew that Cormac was probably facing a lot of conflict in his own head if he even had any feelings for her.

Meredith groaned internally as she heard the carol singers next to the coffee cart that was located just outside of the hospital. She had nothing against Christmas, she loved seeing the way her kids faces lit up when they ran down the stairs to see the presents Santa left them. Carol singers were something else though, Meredith was pretty sure they came for the depth of hell just to annoy her for a month. Grabbing her coffee, she briskly walked past the group as they carried on their rendition of Silent Night.

As she walked through the hospital entrance, Meredith's instantly caught the Christmas decorations that had been put up overnight. Tinsel framed the doorways; a large Christmas tree had been put up and decorated and the nurses' station looked as though an elf had just thrown up on it.  
"Morning, Grey." A smooth, deep Irish accent spoke from behind her.

Mer turned to the voice, hair flying around her as she came face-to-face with the gorgeous paeds doctor who had been taking up more of her thoughts than she would care to admit. "Hayes, you're here early." She was pretty sure he had mentioned that he wouldn't be coming in until later that day.

"One of my patients had some complication early this morning, I needed to come in to operate on him again. Poor lad only had surgery yesterday. Looks like he'll be spending Christmas here."  
Meredith winced, "Was the surgery okay though?'

"Aye, he's in recovery now but it's going to take some time."

Meredith could feel the glances of her co-workers, as they tried to listen in on the conversation between the two heads of department. Not wanting Cormac to feel uncomfortable, she tried to bring an end to their conversation.

"Okay, well I'm going to go now," she awkwardly pointed over to the elevators. "So, I'm just gonna…" Meredith swivelled on her heel and quickly made her way over to the elevator, thankful that the doors opened. She stepped in, cursing at herself for being so awkward.

Just as the doors were about to close, Cormac slid through them and stood in front of Meredith, facing her. "Do you want to tell me what that was about?" He asked her.

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Mer took a long sip of her coffee.

"You know exactly what I'm going on about, Grey. What happened that made you run from me?"

Meredith heaved a sigh; she didn't want Cormac thinking that he was the issue here. "It wasn't you…" she began reluctantly.

"Then who?" He asked, not letting up. God, this man was almost as stubborn as she was. Almost.

"No one, not really. It's just," Meredith threw her head back in frustration. "The nurses, the doctors. They were just staring at us, trying to listen to us."

Cormac chuckled and that threw Meredith completely off-guard. He was a private man, didn't really like many people knowing about his private life so she thought he would have hated other people trying to pry into their business.

"It wasn't like we were talking about something scandalous, Grey." He smirked at her, making Meredith's heartbeat that little bit faster.

Meredith hit his arm, "I know that. It's just that this isn't the first time people have tried to listen in to our conversations and I didn't want you to feel like…" she trailed off.

"Like what?"

"Like there was any pressure. People talk and I didn't want them thinking…"

"Thinking that there might be something going on between us?" Cormac finished off, raising an eyebrow.

Meredith's stomach dropped a little, maybe she had read this all wrong. Maybe Cormac didn't like her at all. The elevator came to a stop and the doors opened. Meredith let out a quick sigh of relief and skirted around Cormac on the General Surgery ward. "I'll see you later." She quietly muttered to him, leaving him in the elevator wondering what had just happened.

For the rest of her morning, Meredith tried to push the thoughts of Cormac Hayes to the back of her mind. She wasn't in the best mood after their conversation, feeling stupid that she thought he would feel like that about her. She knew she was a walking mess. Her entire life was messy. She came with far too much baggage; it was more than just a dead husband. There was the rest of her family to deal with, and three young kids that needed her to be there for them. Why would Cormac want that mess in his life? He was trying to bring up two teenage boys by himself and that wasn't an easy task. He didn't need any more complications in his life and Meredith was just one big complication.

***

Meredith was just about the head to her office to sort out next week's rota when her pager buzzed. She saw that Cormac needed a consult on the paediatric ward and immediately looked around to see if any of the other attendings were around that could go instead. With no one else there to push the responsibility to, Mer knew she was just going to have to pull herself together and go do this consult. Hopefully, it wouldn't take long and wouldn't end up being awkward with Cormac. Even if he didn't feel that way about her, Meredith didn't want to lose him as a friend. He was a good person and they had been through a similar trauma in their lives. Talking to him about it, sharing the same struggles, it helped her cope with being a single parent and a widow.

As she walked into the paeds ward, Meredith saw Cormac leaning against the nurses' station and couldn't help but stare. Feeling someone's gaze on him, Cormac looked up and smiled at Meredith, who tried to fight against the blush rushing towards her cheeks. He walked towards her, smile still on his face with his hands in the pockets of his white lab coat.

"You got my page then?"

Meredith nodded, "Yeah, so which patient did you need a consult for?" She tried to keep her tone neutral and professional.

"This way," Hayes motioned with his head towards a room and Meredith followed just behind him. He came to an abrupt stop outside of a room which had the lights off.

"Uh," Meredith began, confusion was written all over her face.

"Shh," Cormac turned to face her, the smirk still not wiped off of his face.  
"Hayes, what is going on?" Meredith pressed him.

"Grey, could you just shut up for a second?" He teased before taking a step towards her. His hand cupped her face, and he ran a thumb over her cheek.  
"Hayes," she whispered, wondering what the hell had gotten into him.

"I don't care if people talk, Meredith. I don't care if they know as long as you know that I want to be with you." He looked up to the ceiling and Meredith followed his gaze, seeing mistletoe hanging from the doorframe. Meredith looked back at Cormac who grinned at her before leaning into for a kiss, both of them knowing that the entire ward was watching them, and the rest of the hospital would find out by the rest of the day.


	9. Blind Date

Cormac did not know why he had agreed to this. It was a terrible idea. Wilson, for someone insane reason, had decided that he needed to go on a blind date. He had mentioned wanting to tentatively dip his toes into the dating pool again and Jo had decided to take matters into her own hands. She had come to him the day before and told him that he was going on a date at Buchon de Rossi. He had almost rolled his eyes at the pompous name.

Begrudgingly, Cormac had left work he next day and drove straight to the restaurant. Jo had given him a whole array of colourful threats and she promised to follow through on if he didn't turn up and he didn't want to risk it. That didn't mean Cormac was looking forward to going though, he hadn't even bothered to bring a change of clothes. He drove up to the restaurant dressed in a set of dark wash jeans, a black t-shirt and a leather jacket.

After parking up and getting out of the car, Cormac looked up at the French-style restaurant. Through the windows, he could see the place was packed and wonder how Wilson had managed to get a table at this place. There was a moment of hesitation as Cormac carried out looking at the establishment. Did he really want his first date since Abigail to be a blind date? Shouldn't something as big as this be in his control at least? DIdn't he and Meredith have a conversation about how firsts can mean a lot? Was he not taking it seriously enough by accepting to go on this date? Cormac pinched the bridge of his nose. He may as well go in there and get this over with. He wasn't going to be tied to this woman forever if he just sat down for a meal with her.

Gravel crunched beneath his feet as Cormac made his way towards the restaurant. As he entered, he gave Jo's name to the receptionist who told him that his guest was already seated. I guess there's no more time to prepare then. Cormac had been hoping that he would be the first on there, giving him just a little more time to calm down but it didn't seem that that was the case. He was going to find out who this mystery woman is sooner than he thought.

As both he and the receptionist walked towards the table, Cormac wasn't able to see the woman's face. She was in a seat facing away from them, all he could see was mid length blonde hair. When they were only five steps away from the table, Cormac told the receptionist that he was good from here and let her go back to the front of the restaurant.

Seattle was full of a lot of familiar voice but there was only one person that Meredith Grey knew who had an Irish accent. She turned around in her seat, raising an eyebrow when she saw Cormac coming towards her and almost laughed a the shock written on his face when he stood in front of her.

"Grey?"

She laughed, a soft giggle that Cormac had begun to grow familiar to hearing around the hospital and often looked forward to. "I'm guessing Jo sent you here?" Meredith wanted to make sure that this was actually her blind date and not some coincidence.

Cormac nodded before shaking himself of the shock, "Yeah, it seems that she set the two of us up together."

As he took the seat opposite her, Meredith took the time to check him out. Derek had always been dressed to impress; from the moment she had met him. Always in a shirt and either a smart set of jeans or slacks which was sometimes accompanied by some kind of sweater. Cormac was the opposite though. Anytime she had seen him out of scrubs he was always dressed down with a set of well-worn jeans and a plain t-shirt but he wore them well. That was for certain.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" Meredith asked as Cormac settled in his seat and looked at the menu.

"Honestly? Before I walked in here, I wasn't. But knowing that it's you I'm sat across from… well, that's definitely changed things." There was a playful glint in his eyes that made Meredith arch an eyebrow at him.

"Oh really?"

"Well," Cormac began, "I had been planning on asking you out for dinner soon. Seems like Wilson just speeded up the process."

Meredith bit her lip, trying to suppress the smile that was spreading on her lips. He didn't need to know that he was doing a good job in 'woo-ing' her.

The two of them remained quiet as they looked through the menu before Meredith looked up at her date. She leaned forward over the table, "Please tell me I'm not the only one who wants a cheeseburger right now?" She asked him in a hushed voice.

Cormac burst out laughing, the sudden sound caused the people around them to look over. Most of them thoroughly unimpressed. Getting out of his seat, he Meredith up by her hand, grabbing her bag and coat for her before running out the restaurant. Meredith laughed as the weaved around the table to get out, yelling at him to slow down. When they got out into the cool night air, the two of them were still laughing as they leaned against the bonnet of Cormac's car.

"What the hell was that?" Meredith asked still laughing as Cormac draped her cream coat over her shoulders. Meredith shrugged her arms through and took her bag from him.

"I thought you said you wanted a cheeseburger and we weren't going to get one in there. Come on then!" He motioned his head away from the restaurant and offered Meredith his arm.

"We can't just leave!" She protested.

"Why not?"

"Because Jo! And the reservation! She'll murder both of us if she finds out we didn't go!"

"Grey, I don't think she's going to care where this date was as long as we went on one. Now, I'm not planning on heading back in there and I would love if you would join me."

Meredith looked back at the restaurant before shaking her head with a smile on her fan and wrapping her hand around Cormac's arm.

"Where exactly are we going?"

Cormac looked down at her, grinning. "There's a diner about a ten-minute walk from here, me and the boys went there the first night we got here."

"Sally's?" Meredith interrupted, suddenly very excited.

"Yeah, you know it?"

"You forget that I was brought up in Seattle, there's not a whole load about this place that I don't know."

"Well, you're going to have to take me on a proper tour at some point then."

Meredith gave him a grin, "I don't know, are you sure you trust me and my geographical skills? I got lost on my first day on my intern year at the hospital."

"Don't most interns though?"

"Yeah but I had basically grown up in that place and I was lost wheeling a patient around in a bed."

They both laughed as they shared stories of their residency years. The temperature dropped a couple more degrees and Meredith felt herself moving closer to Cormac for heat and Cormac drew her in closer to his body. She hadn't felt this safe in a long time. Being a single mother of three, with two sisters who leaned on her for support, Meredith was there to protect a lot of people and she did it without complaint. It had been a while since she had felt a sense of safety with someone so soon.

The bright, neon sign of Sally's diner came into their eye-line as Meredith laughed as Cormac told her the story of walking around the hospital with his scrubs on inside out after Liam had been born and a sleepless night.

Just as they approached Sally's, the door to the diner swung open.

"Dad!?"

Cormac came face-to-face with his oldest son, Liam. Both of them looking in shock at each other.

"Liam, you're meant to be home with your brother."

"Yeah, well I thought you were meant to be at work." Liam then caught sight of Meredith who had let go of Cormac's arm and was stood a few steps behind him. "You're on a date, seriously?" Liam scoffed, looking appalled.

"Liam," Cormac placed a hand on his son's shoulder who immediately brushed it off.

"Mom's been dead for two years and you're already ready to find someone else to replace her. Are you kidding me!?"

Meredith couldn't see Cormac's face but knew he must have been hurt by the accusation that was hurled at him.

"It's not like that, your mother-"

Liam pushed his father away, anger written all over his face. "You know what? I don't care, do whatever you like. You already are."

Liam stormed away from the two adults, leaving his dad in shock before turning around and calling after him. "Liam, come on."

Cormac began to follow after him, before remembering that he was on a date with Meredith and turning around to her. "I'm so sorry, Grey." He began.

Meredith quickly shook her head at him and gave him an understanding smile. "It's fine, go after him."

"Thank you, I promise I'll find a way to make it up to you." Cormac called over his shoulder and he jogged to catch up with Liam. She understood where Liam's anger came from and knew that Cormac needed to be there for him right now.

Sighing, Meredith made her way into the diner by herself. There might not be a date tonight, but she still needed to eat.


	10. Blind Date Pt 2

“Liam! Wait up, son!” Cormac called behind his eldest. 

This was not the way he had thought this evening was going to end. He had gone from not wanting to go on the blind date, to getting butterflies when he saw Meredith sat at the table and now, he was running after his son. An attempt of some sort of damage control. 

Cormac had known that telling his boys that he was beginning to date again was not going to be easy to do. Especially when he was still wrapping his head around the fact. Liam seeing his Dad on an unexpected date was not going to help matters. He wasn’t meant to find out this way. Since coming to Seattle and meeting Meredith, Cormac had felt a shift within himself that made him feel as though he was ready to try and date. This blind date had not been his idea though, he hadn’t even been taking it seriously. More just a way to stop a co-worker from harping on at him. That was why he hadn’t mentioned anything to his sons. 

He’d had it all planned out though. On the weekend, he was going to ask them how they would feel if he decided to begin dating again. He was going to make sure that he reassured them that he still loved their Mom, that nothing would ever change that fact but she wanted him to find someone when he was ready to. Cormac had gone over the speech in his head a million times, preparing himself for this chat but it looked like all of that preparation was about to go down the drain. 

It didn’t take long for Cormac to find Liam sat on a bench, overlooking the docks. The Seattle skyline glowed at night. Cormac had set his eyes on that skyline the same night he and the boys had landed in Seattle. There had been something about it that had settled his soul, that made him feel that he’d made the right decision in moving here with the kids. 

Silently, Cormac sat next to Liam, both of them staring straight ahead. The only noise around them was the distant rumble traffic and the sound of the water hitting the barriers. In any other circumstance, Cormac would have found this rather peaceful but instead, he felt like he had a lead ball in his stomach. 

“Son,” Cormac turned his body towards Liam. “Can we talk about this please?” 

Liam just shrugged his shoulders, a gesture that Cormac had become accustomed to this the boys had entered their teen years. He always wondered if that would have been different if Abigail had been around if they would be more open, less worried that opening up to someone would result in unimaginable pain. 

“What’s there to talk about?” 

Cormac sighed, this conversation was obviously not going the way he would like it to. “Meredith and I-“

Liam cut him off, “Meredith? So, it’s not Dr Grey anymore,” he scoffed. 

“Liam, I work with her-” 

“And dating her apparently…” his son rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. 

“Are you going to let me explain?” Cormac asked with a sigh. He took his son’s silence as a yes. “It was a blind date.” 

“So, it was a date!” Liam yelled accusingly, glaring at his father. 

Cormac slowly nodded, “Yes.” There was no point in denying that fact. “But if it makes you or Austin feel uncomfortable then it won’t happen again. Not until you’re both in a place where you’d feel okay with it.”

There had been a lot of lessons that Cormac had needed to learn when he had become a father but one thing that had come naturally to the surgical resident was that his kids’ needs always came before his own. It didn’t matter what he had to change or put aside, Cormac Hayes would do absolutely anything to make sure that his boys were happy and safe. 

Sure, he might have thought that there were some feelings that had been blossoming for Meredith, but he wasn’t willing to explore that at the risk to his boys’ wellbeing. They only had one parent left and it was on him to make sure that he was the best parent that he could be. 

To Cormac’s surprise, Liam just scoffed and stood up, walking towards the railing. He rested his arms on it and leaned forward, looking down at the rippling water below him. Not quite understanding what was going through his son’s head, Cormac went to stand beside him. 

“What was that about?” 

“What?” The attitude in his voice was familiar to Cormac now but the undertones of hostility were not something that he was used to. 

“Liam, son. I promise this won’t happen again until you and Austin are comfortable.” 

“That’s not the point here, Dad!” Liam’s outburst came as a shock as he quickly turned around to face his dad. 

“Right,” Cormac said slightly taken aback, trying not to let the shock show on his face. “So, what is the point?” He gently probed, hoping that his son would open up to him about what was going on. If Liam wasn’t upset that Cormac was on a date then he had no clue what his son was. 

‘’You didn’t bother to tell us, Dad. Me or Austin. You didn’t bother to even tell us that you were ready to date.” Realisation dawned on Cormac’s face as he realised what his mistake was. 

Cormac placed a hand on Liam’s shoulder, “Son…” 

Liam shrugged off the hand and shook his head. “Austin and I knew that you would eventually date again, Dad. Mom told us not to hold it against you, she even told us to encourage you to get back out there.”

There was a faint smile on Liam and Cormac’s lips and the teenager spoke about his mother. Of course, Abigail would tell the boys to encourage Cormac to date, it was such a typical thing for her to do. 

“I just thought you would have spoken to us about it…” 

Cormac could hear the pain in Liam’s voice and it killed him to know that he was the cause of it. “It was just a blind date, Liam. I wasn’t the one to set it up.” 

Liam sighed, “I know and I get that but if you were willing to agree to it, it means that you felt that you were ready. You were ready to date again and you didn’t bother to let us know.” 

Cormac knew that his son had a valid point. He had been thinking about dating again for a while now, ever since he had gotten to know Meredith Grey. The thought had been intimidating though. It had been years since he had even asked someone on a date, he didn’t know what the minefield of dating was like anymore. Regardless of that though, he knew that he should have spoken to his boys about it. Let them know that he was at least considering putting himself out there again so when he did go on a date it wouldn’t end up… well… like this. 

“I’m sorry, son, for not talking to you boys about this. It was wrong of me, you should have been included. I didn’t mean to hurt you or your brother.” Cormac rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “If I’m honest with you, this whole dating thing has me a little nervous. It’s not exactly every dad’s dream to tell their teenage sons that they had no clue what modern dating is even like.” 

This elicited a smile from Liam, “We want you to be happy, Dad. We know that you still love mom, we know that she’ll always be a part of our lives but you deserve to find someone as well. Just keep us in the loop? I mean not really in the loop, just you know… let us know if you find someone you want to date… just so we’re not surprised.” 

Cormac chuckled at his son’s babbling and pulled him into a hug. For once, Liam didn’t resist and hugged him back. 

“I promise, I’ll let you know.” 

Pulling away, a mischievous grin spread on Liam’s face and Cormac knew that the only thing that that could mean was trouble. “So, you and Dr Grey…” he trailed off. 

“I told you, it was just a blind date.” 

“I mean, I know that that’s what you’re saying but I saw the way you looked at her, Dad and it definitely wasn’t the way that colleagues look at each other.”  
Cormac pinched his brow and gave a sheepish smile to his son’s teasing. He was not going to get out of this one easily.


	11. Promises of Forever

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright guys, hope you're ready for a chunky chapter

After 45 minutes of trying to put Scout down for this nap, the one-year-old was finally fast asleep in his cot, unaware of the frustration that he had caused his mother. Amelia took a moment to look down at her son, he was yet to grow out of his cherub cheeks, and she had to resist the urge to squeeze them.

There would never be a time where Amelia would get over the miracle that was Scout Derek Lincoln Shepard. After the turmoil she had got through with her first baby, Amelia hadn’t thought she’d ever be able to give birth to a healthy baby. Yet here she was, the mother to a little boy who had just turned one a month ago, going through the rollercoaster called parenting with the man of her dreams. It all just seemed too good to be true, but she was over second-guessing the good things in her life. Ever since Scout had been born, she’d learnt to appreciate every good thing that came into her life, trying her best not to worry that it could all be taken from her.

Grabbing the baby monitor from the chest-of-drawers, Amelia left the door slightly ajar as she made her way downstairs. Heading into the living room of the three-bedroom new-build that she and Link had just bought, Amelia found her sisters lounging on the L-shape sofa, a glass of red wine in hand each.

Amelia dropped herself in between the two of them, replacing the baby monitor in her hand for a glass of alcohol-free wine that Link always made sure was in the house for her.

“Come on then, why have you dragged me here on a Saturday afternoon?” Meredith teased.

It wasn’t very often they would come down to Amelia’s house. Even with everyone having moved out and Meredith only living at home with her kids now, it was still the meeting point for all of her friends and family. Old habits die hard.

“Well,” Amelia drew out, a large smile spreading across her face.

Maggie leaned in closer, eager to find out. Meredith on the other hand just raised brow, waiting for her sister to just get on with telling them what was happening. Amelia reached into her jeans pocket and pulled out a princess cut diamond ring and slipped into onto her ring finger.

Letting out a screech that shouldn’t have been able to come from human, Maggie threw her arms around Amelia. Thankfully, she had finished the wine in her glass. When Maggie finally let go, Meredith pulled Amelia into a hug of her own. “Congratulations! I’m so happy for you,” she whispered into Amelia’s ear.

Whilst Meredith was not one to hug her sisters, this occasion called for it. She knew the demons that Amelia had had to battle to get to where she was today. Losing her baby, a failed marriage, her struggle with addiction, losing her brother. For the things Mere hadn’t had a front seat for, Amelia had told her all about them in minute detail. Then she had found Link and Meredith had seen the change in Amelia, she no longer walked with the weight of the world on her shoulders.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

“Link!” Cormac called out to the blonde-haired man, seeing him get out of his car and jogged over to him.

“Hayes,” both men clapped each other on the back.

“I hear congratulations are in order!”

A huge grin spread across Link’s face, “So, you heard?”

“Aye, Meredith told me about it last night. I’m chuffed for you both!” When Meredith had rung last night to tell him the news, he could hear the pure joy that was in her voice. That was one of the things that he loved about her, the way she always rooted for the people she cared about unapologetically, how she never let the losses she had faced darken her outlook on life.

“Thanks, man. Honestly, it just all feels like this huge dream, right now.” Link didn’t care how soft it might have made him seem, he had an intelligent, strong woman who just agreed to marry him and a healthy happy baby he got to go home to. There was nothing more that he could have asked for from life.

Walking into the hospital, both men began to talk about the upcoming wedding. Link and Cormac had begun to grow close to over the past year when Cormac had started dating Meredith. He’d found himself down her house more often and ended up getting to know Link a lot better. Link had already told Cormac about his plans to propose and made him promise not to tell Meredith which had been no easy feat. Meredith was able to get a brick wall to tell its secrets if she really wanted it to.

“Actually, I was hoping if you’d be one of my groomsmen.”

Cormac was slightly taken aback at the request. As close as he and Link had gotten, the last thing he expected was for Link to ask him to be part of the wedding. The best he thought was going to happen was that Meredith would bring him along as her plus-one.

“I’d be honoured mate.” Both men grinned at each other.

Cormac hadn’t really known what to expect when he moved to Seattle. He had definitely not been expecting to end up with a girlfriend and friends that he considered he had considered family, who were there for him and his boys. After Abigail had passed, he didn’t think anywhere would feel like home again but Seattle had welcomed him and his boys with open arms and he couldn’t imagine being anywhere else now.

The two surgeons had headed up to the attendings' lounge and gotten changed out of their street clothes. Various doctors offered their congratulations to Link who gladly accepted them, unable to stop himself from smiling. Looking on, Cormac couldn’t help but give in to the infectious joy that Link was radiating. It made him think about his own future with Meredith.

He hadn’t wanted to fall in love again after what had happened. It was out of the question for him, he had just wanted to focus on his work and his boys. They were the only things that had mattered. The moment he had stepped foot into Grey-Sloan Memorial hospital though, that had completely changed. He’d become curious about who Meredith Grey really was and as he had gotten to know her, he found himself falling for her. And surprisingly for him, he could even see himself proposing to Meredith in the future.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

A month had passed since Link and Amelia had announced their engagement to the rest of the hospital staff and they couldn’t wait to tie the knot. Which was why they decided not to wait too long at all. Neither of them wanted a big wedding so there was no reason to wait over a year to walk down the aisle.

They were more than ready to get planning underway but knew that there were a couple of things that they needed to sort out first which was why Amelia found herself standing across a surgical table to one of her sister’s.

“Why exactly did you want to stand here and watch this surgery?”

“I realised you won your Catherine Fox award for this and I’ve never actually seen you carry out an abdominal wall transplant.”

Meredith looked up from surgery, sceptical eyes scanning Amelia’s face. “Mhm, sure. Suction.”

It took another fifteen minutes before Amelia managed to build up the courage to talk to Meredith again. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about the wedding…”

Meredith didn’t look up from the body cavity and she carried on working, waiting for Amelia to continue.

“I was hoping that you would be my maid of honour?”

That had made Meredith look up and stop what she was doing. “Uh, I’m sorry, what?”

“My maid of honour. Most brides usually have them. You know, organising my bachelorette party, coming to my dress fittings, telling me I look beautiful on my wedding day.”

Still in shock at the question, Meredith continued with her surgery.

“It was stupid, I shouldn’t have asked. You’re already busy with the kids and work…” Amelia began to babble

Meredith cut her off, “It’s not that. I mean, are you sure you don’t want Maggie to be your maid of honour? She has that whole peppy, happy thing going on that would probably work for weddings.”

Amelia shook her head, “I love Maggie and she’s still my sister, but I want you to be my maid of honour. Look, I know we haven’t always gotten on and we hated each other for a little but you’ve always been there when I’ve needed you. Always given me the truths that I haven’t wanted to hear. You cared about me Mere, even when you couldn’t stand me. So, there’s no one else that I would want to be my maid of honour.”

The corners of Mere’s eyes creased as she looked up at her sister, her smile hidden under the surgical face mask.

“Then I guess you got yourself a maid of honour then.”

“Oh, uh- I just wanted to ask one more thing!”

A little sceptical, Meredith looked back up quickly, “What?”

“I wanted to know if it was okay with you that I asked Bailey to walk me down the aisle.”

Slightly confused why Amelia needed to ask her about it, she just shrugged. “I mean Bailey’s her own woman; don’t really think you need my permission.” Meredith did think it was a little strange that she wanted Bailey to walk her down the aisle but each to their own.

“No!” Amelia laughed, “Not big Bailey. Little Bailey, as in my nephew.”

“Oh,” well that suddenly made a lot more sense.

“It’s just that I would have loved to have had Derek there to walk me down the aisle,” Amelia felt a lump in her throat. “And I love your kids. I wanted Zola and Ellis to be flower girls and I thought since Derek can’t be there, having his son walk me down the aisle… it would feel right…”

Meredith’s silence started to make Amelia feel nervous. She was worried that she’d made Mere feel uncomfortable or upset but when she finally looked at Meredith instead of her shoes, she saw tears in her eyes, the creases by her eyes from her smile had not disappeared.

“I think that would be perfect.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The wedding had come around quicker than either the bride or groom had anticipated. They had to somehow squeeze in food tastings and suit fittings between a one-year-old who apparently hated sleeping at night and shifts that left hem like passing ships in the night. But even amidst the chaos around them, Link and Amelia knew that there was nothing more that they wanted than to get through the rest of their messy lives as husband and wife.

The guests had begun to take their seats facing the open ocean. Link and Amelia had mainly invited their close friends from the hospital for the ceremony as well as Link’s parents. He’d asked Amelia multiple times if she was sure she didn’t want to have her own family there, but she had told him that Meredith and Maggie were all the family she needed as well as Link and Scout. The last thing she wanted was for the Shepard clan to touch down in Seattle and lecture her and probably Meredith as well. It wasn’t worth the hassle.

Link stood at the end of the aisle, making small talk to the guests that had already taken their seats. He was glad that a beach wedding had meant that he didn’t have to wear a full suit because he was sweating bullets from being so nervous. Instead, he wore pale blue trousers, with a matching waistcoat, white shirt and a floral, slim blue tie. Nico, Cormac and Jackson stood next to him in the same attire but had all forgone the tie.

“You’ll be alright, mate, just remember to breathe,” Cormac teased after seeing how nervously Link was wringing his hands.

Link let out a shaky laugh and Nico clapped a hand on his back. “Hey, it’ll be fine. I mean, you already have a kid together, and if you got through your first year of being parents, then this has to be in a walk in the park.”

Nico had a point. Their first year of parenting had been difficult as they tried to find their feet and navigate new waters. There has been arguments and nights on the sofa but neither of them would have wanted to have gone through that journey with anyone else. It had made them both understand each other on a deeper level and that had only helped in strengthening the relationship in the end.

He didn’t need to be nervous. Marrying Amelia was exactly what he wanted, there was no doubt in his mind that she was the only person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Amelia had been bouncing off of the walls since five that morning and made sure that Meredith and Maggie were awake with her. There was no fear or apprehension in her eyes as the make-up artist and hairstylist arrived at Meredith’s house to get her ready. Meredith knew that unlike Amelia’s wedding with Owen, she didn’t need to give her a get-out clause. There was nowhere Amelia wanted to be more right now than at the end of the aisle with Link.

Slowly walking down, the stairs, Amelia caught the attention of everyone in the living room. Dressed in an A-line, ivory gown, Amelia looked every bit the beach bride with the chiffon dress covered with beading and embroidery on the top and over the straps which dropped into a V. The skirt of her dress was plain allowing the material to speak for itself, gently moving with each step that she took. She wore a set of diamond earrings that Derek had gotten her when she had graduated med school and a simple bracelet that he had gotten her for her 18th birthday. Her short hair was curled with a crystal and leaf halo entwined with her brown locks. In her hands, Amelia held a beautiful bouquet of lavender, Antigua spray roses, Romantic Antike, Rene Goscinny roses, which matched the colour of her bridesmaids' dresses, as well as gorgeous green foliage. She was positively radiant.

Zola, Bailey and Ellis immediately ran up to their Auntie Amy but stopped short since Mere and Maggie had already told them that she was going to be wearing a very special dress and they needed to be careful around her. Amelia didn’t care though and crouched down with her arms outstretched.

“Come here, you three!”

Without hesitation, the kids ran into her arms and she gave them a tight hug.

“You look beautiful Auntie Amy!” Zola grinned at her aunt when she finally let go.

“Like a princess!” Ellis piped up.

“You’re super pretty today, Auntie Amy but you are every day!” The three women burst out into laughter. Bailey had somehow gotten Derek’s smooth-talking skills

“Thank you, guys, I love you three so much, you know that right?”

The kids all nodded eagerly, huge smiles on their faces. The whole meaning of marriage might not have completely resonated with them at their age, but they understand that this was an important day for both Amelia and Link, and it meant that they loved each other very much and were very happy together and for three kids, that’s all that mattered.

“We love you too!” the three of them said in sync.

Meredith and Maggie stoop up from the couch, their coral, asymmetric wrap dresses, cut into a V was made from the same chiffon material as Amelia wedding dress. Meredith gave Amelia a quick squeeze.

“Derek is so damn proud of you right now.”

The two sisters looked at each other, tears threatening to fall from both of their eyes.

“Don’t you dare!” Meredith threatened her, “The make-up artist spent way too long for you to go and ruin it now and I’m not having you blaming me for crappy wedding photos.”

It was enough to make Amelia laugh. Losing Derek had hit her hard, worse than when she had lost her dad. She’d been too young then and Derek had ended up being that father-figure for her. Nothing dulled the ache she felt when she thought about her brother but the relationship that she had forged with Meredith in the years following his death had been the only light that had come from it all.

“Mama!” Scout happily babbled, wriggling around in Maggie’s arm.

Meredith took Amelia’s bouquet of her as she reached for her son. “Hey there baby boy. Don’t you look handsome today?”

Scout just clapped his hands together, his eyes roaming over Amelia’s face, a look of pure bliss over his own.

Maggie had pulled out some tissues from her clutch bag and began to wipe away her tears. Watching her in her peripheral vision, Meredith couldn’t help but roll her eyes and laugh.

“What? It’s just a really beautiful day,” Maggie sniffed. “And Amelia, you look like an absolute goddess. Link is incredibly lucky to have you as his wife.”

Amelia beamed, “I’m pretty sure I’m the lucky one here.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It had been a task to get four kids into the wedding cars and make sure that they hadn’t forgotten anything in the house but miraculously, the bridal party weren’t late for the wedding. They were tucked away from the sight of the guests and Link but were able to see the everyone from over the railing.

Bailey had a firm grasp on Amelia's hand and looked up at her with a toothy grin. “I’ve got you, Auntie Amy!”

At that moment, seeing the way he smiled and the glint in his eyes, Bailey reminded her exactly of her brother. He even knew the exact right thing to say to her.

“You ready for this?” Maggie asked, holding Scout who was acting as ring bearer for the ceremony.

“Yes, most definitely. Come on, let’s go!”

Maggie laughed at her sister’s eagerness and Scout joined it, his peals of laughter making Amelia’s heart fit to burst. She was once again reminded of how perfect her life and turned out.

Meredith and Maggie ushered the kids into order, giving them quick reminders of what they were meant to do and where they were meant to sit after walking down the aisle. The first few bars of VSQ’s A Sky Full of Stars began to play, Maggie quickly turned around from the front of the line with tears in her eyes and mouthed good luck to Amelia before giving Scout a quick kiss on the top of his head and began to make her way down the aisle. A huge grin was on her face as she looked around the guests and caught Winston’s eye.

As she got to the end of the aisle, Nico grinned at the little boy and took the rings from the pillow that he was holding.

“Thanks, little man!” He cooed.

Link took his son from Maggie’s arms and gave him a quick cuddle before giving him back to Maggie.

Before taking her spot to the left of the aisle Maggie gave Scout to Link’s mum who could not have looked any prouder at that moment.

Seeing that Maggie had gone into place, Meredith turned around and grinned at Amelia. “Hey, I know I don’t say it much, but I love you.”

Before she could turn back around Amelia gave her a grin that matched her own. “Love you too, sis.”

“Let’s get you married then,” Meredith turned around, the coral fabric ripped around her legs and began to walk down the aisle.

She could sense the amount of joy that was radiating around her. Looking straight ahead she grinned at Link who looked just as eager as Amelia had. She could not wait to see his face when Amelia walked down the aisle. The guy was practically bouncing on his feet in anticipation and Mere had to stifle a laugh.

Scanning over the rest of the groom’s party she saw Cormac staring at her intensely, his gaze never once leaving her. Meredith winked at him with a smirk on her face and he couldn’t help but burst out laughing. The guests all turned to look at the source of laughter, wondering what the hell was going on. Mere could see Hayes starting to go red and shot her a scowl.

“Hate you,” he mouthed, and Meredith just rolled her eyes in return as he shook his head.

She gave Link a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek before she stood next to Maggie. Watching her little girls walk down had made Meredith hold her breath. She’d been worried about something going wrong, especially since Ellis now seemed to be in a phase where she just about bumped and tripped over anything, including thin air, but the two girls had managed to play their parts perfectly and took their seats next to Bailey and Richard on the bride’s side of the aisle.

“Could everyone please stand for the bride.”

The words were enough to open a cage of butterflies in Link’s stomach. Why did this have to take so long? He would have happily run down the aisle and carry Amelia back to the alter to hurry this up so they could just get married already. He was seriously considering this thought when he saw a flash of white up ahead.

His bride had arrived.

It was almost as if Amelia was gliding down the aisle. She was radiating so much joy and happiness, not a single hesitation in her step. The pair couldn’t tear their eyes away from each other and Link wasn’t even ashamed on the streams of tears that fell down his face.

After what felt like an age, she was finally stood in front of him. Link went to take her hand when Bailey stopped him. He looked down at the little boy who had a very serious look on his face and gestured for him to crouch down which Link did with no question.

“You better not hurt my Auntie Amy because mommy just let me start karate lessons!”

Link bit back a smile and solemnly nodded at him. “I promise, I’m going to love your Aunt Amy forever.”

Bailey thought for a moment before nodding and fist-bumping his Uncle Link. At last, he had Amelia in his arm’s… or at least had her hand in his. The ceremony went by in a blur. An ocean’s worth of tears was shed from everyone that was there as Link and Amelia devoted themselves to each other for the rest of their lives.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Their afternoon ceremony soon turned into an evening reception on the beach. Drinks flowed freely and Amelia had spent the entire reception in Link’s arms. Richard and Catherine had eventually taken the kids back to their home as it had gotten later, telling the adults to enjoy the rest of the night.

“You ready to get out of here, Dr Shepard-Lincoln?” Link whispered in Amelia’s ear.

She planted a quick kiss on his lips before turning back to their wedding party. “I definitely am but there’s just one last thing!” She wriggled out of Link’s hold, her new husband giving her a curious look as she walked over to the DJ who nodded at her.

“Alright, everyone!” The DJ called down the microphone, turning the music down. “Our bride and groom are going to be leaving but before they leave there’s just one thing left to do. Time for the bouquet throw.”

A gaggle of men and women alike began to make their way to the front of the stage where Amelia stood with her back to them ready to throw her bouquet into the crowd. Meredith watched from an empty table as Maggie rushed over, laughing as her tipsy sister tripped over a chair leg.

The bouquet was finally thrown into the air and the crowd lurched forward. Cormac was still looking down at his phone as he rejoined the reception after just getting off a call with his boys. They’d headed back home and he had wanted to make sure that they’d gotten there safe. Cormac hadn’t even realised what was going on until an object came hurtling towards his face. Out of instinct Hayes went to catch his mysterious object and looked confused when he saw a bunch of flowers in his hands.

“Looks like you and Mere are next, Hayes!” Amelia teased down the microphone so everyone could hear.

Cormac could help but turn bright red before quickly shuffling out of the crown and towards his girlfriend whom he knew was going to tease him endlessly about this.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Eventually, after what felt like endless goodbyes, Link and Amelia manage to get away from their wedding reception and into the car. Their hand entwined on the console and Amelia could help but stare at her husband’s profile.

“You good there?” Link asked, quickly glancing at her. A look of pure adoration over his face.

“Mhm,” she murmured. “I’m just extremely happy, and I don’t want this to end.

“Hey, you don’t need to worry about that. We’ve got forever.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really hope you all enjoyed this one, it took me an age to write. Let me know what else you would like to see or any prompts that you have x


	12. Shoulder to Shoulder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Cormac talks about home and Meredith tell him about her time in Ireland during her gap year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra point if you guys know why I named this chapter Shoulder to Shoulder

“So come on, tell me about Ireland.” Meredith's eyes held a glint of playfulness as she looked up from the body cavity to the paediatric surgeon. 

“Ireland?” 

“We have time to kill.” 

It had become a sort of tradition between the two of them that when they were in surgery together, they would end up sharing stories with each other. Cormac couldn’t help it, storytelling was in his Celtic blood and for Meredith… well she had enough stories to last them 100 surgeries. 

Meredith would be lying if she was to say that she wasn’t curious about Cormac’s time back in Ireland. He had shared a lot about Abigail and the boys, their years in America and his short tenure in Switzerland but Ireland hadn’t come up in conversation at all. 

“What do you want to know?” Cormac’s Irish accent had become surprisingly soothing to Meredith. 

“Where in Ireland are you from?” 

“Athenry, it’s not far from Galway.” A nostalgic smile was placed upon Cormac’s lips as he thought about his hometown. “Beautiful place and thankfully was never privy to the tourists Galway had to suffer with.” 

Meredith continued to work rhythmically as she listened to Cormac. 

“Full of fields that were miles long. Ma would have to tear me and Aoife away from them when it was time for dinner.” 

“Aoife?” Meredith asked about the unfamiliar name. 

“My little sister, pain in my backside most of the time,” Cormac answered with an eye-roll. 

Meredith’s laughter filled the OR room, “Must have been nice growing up with a sibling though.” 

“You should know, with Maggie.” 

Sometimes, Meredith forgot how much Cormac didn’t know about her or this hospital. She felt like she had known him for years but there were moments like these when Meredith remembered that Cormac didn’t know her entire life story like everyone else in the hospital. It was refreshing to know that there was someone who didn’t know how many times she had been admitted as a patient into the very hospital that she worked in.  
“Actually, I didn’t even meet Maggie until a couple of years ago,” she said sheepishly. 

Cormac arched an eyebrow at her, ready for her to continue but Meredith just shook her head. “My family history is… messy, it’s a story for another surgery. I want to hear more about Ireland.” 

“I’ll hold you to that, Grey.” 

The playful glint in his eyes made Meredith’s stomach do flips and she felt like she was a teenager all over again. She quickly moved her eyes back to exposed organs in front of her, not trusting herself to look back up at Cormac. 

“Do you miss it?” Meredith finally asked when she managed to control her butterflies. 

“Home? Every damn day.” Cormac’s voice held a sense of longing. “No place like it. I’m planning on heading back there when the boys are off for Summer. My ma’s going to kill me if she goes any longer without seeing her grandsons.” 

“You know, I’ve visited Ireland before.” 

“Oh really?” Cormac was always a little sceptical when people told him they’d be to Ireland. The most they’d seen was Dublin, a lot of pubs and the Guinness Factory and whilst they were great places to visit, Ireland was a lot more than all of that. 

Meredith smile as she thought about her trip made the corner of her eyes crease. It felt like a lifetime ago. “I did a gap year before Med School and went backpacking around Europe with a friend. Spent a week longer in Ireland that we thought we were going to. It was beautiful though, did a few days in Dublin and then headed to Killarney. Kilkenny was just out of this world and then did a few days in Kinsale before we headed to Galway.”

“I’m impressed, Grey, most people just see the inside of a pub whilst they’re there.” 

That elicited another laugh from Meredith and Cormac suddenly found himself in awe of the spitfire that stood opposite him. She’d been through a lot in her life and yet still laughed so freely, the darkness she had faced had not overshadowed the hope she had in life.

“I would be too impressed, I did spend an awful lot of my evenings in the pubs. Gave a lot of the men there a run for their money, they didn’t think I could keep up with their drinking games.” 

“And naturally you proved them wrong,” Cormac smirked. 

Meredith gave him a smirk of her own in response before continuing with her sutures. 

“So, are you going to tell me more about this gap year of yours?” 

“Only when you tell me about that electric fence story.”


End file.
